MUSHROOM CULTIVATION: A WAY FOR BETTER FUTURE

The consumption of mushrooms probably occurred during prehistory, in the hunting and gathering period. The Chinese and Japanese have utilized mushrooms for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. The mushroom was first cultivated in France in 1960. It was then taken up in England and from there it spread to rest of the world. Today, Covid-19 pandemic has affected people directly or indirectly in different ways. The number of people in the world is facing the problem of hunger, malnutrition, poverty and unemployment as consequences of COVID-19. Because mushroom cultivation does not demand land space and heavy input of labour and money, it can be developed as a small industry to check poverty and unemployment at same time. The only short-term benefit of Covid was a significant reduction in air pollution which unfortunately increased due to crop residues burning in the latter part of the lockdown, causing health issues as well as contributing to global warming. 

 

 

Mycoremediation is the use of fungi to degrade pollutants from the environment. Fungi especially mushrooms have the innate capability to breakdown wide range of agro-waste, disassembling their long-chained polymer into simpler form by producing variety of extracellular enzymes. Hence, biological pretreatment of such wastes with mushrooms is not only economically and environmentally attractive but also provides a rich addition to the diet in form of functional food - The mushrooms which can fulfil minimum nutritional requirement especially in terms of protein deficiency among malnourished people. They can also be used as tonics, medicines, cosmeceuticals, and as natural biocontrol agents in plant protection with insecticidal, fungicidal, bactericidal, herbicidal, nematocidal, and antiphytoviral activities. The carbon dioxide, produced during the mushroom cultivation, can further be used in green houses and indoor gardens. CO₂ can often be a limiting factor for plant growth. As CO₂ concentration rises above ambient levels, net photosynthesis increases. This improves plant fitness and can increase production. The significance of mushroom farming does not end with the above mentioned heads. The agro-wastes left after mushroom harvest is called Spent Mushroom Substrate (SMS). It can be further composted to manure by using Cellulolytic fungi (Trichoderma sp.) through rapid composting method. The vermicomposting is another effective way of recycling of this manure with the help of earthworms for the production of vermicompost. Microbial enrichment of manure can be done for improving its nutrient status. These products can be used to promote organic farming in view of the growing demand for safe and healthy food and long term sustainability and concern on environmental pollution associated with indiscriminate use of agro-chemicals. The multidimensional applications of the mushroom cultivation have the potential to address important issues confronting humanity and pave the way for a brighter future. (PDF/PPT)

 

Cited this as:

     Siddhant, P.O. Ukaogo and Shalini Mishra (2021): Mushroom cultivation: A way for better future. International Scientific Research and Innovation Congress, Istanbul. September 11-12, 2021. In: Abstract book edited by Ömer Gökhan ULUM and Ahmet AKBABA. pp. 218-219.